Category Archives: Atlantic coast 2015

I didn’t take so many pictures this time but was filming the tour with a GoPro camera. Every day I took a couple of short videos and finally finished to combine them into a 45 minute video. I couldn’t decide for any background music so there is no sound. Probably it is a good idea to turn on some music while watching..

On the top of the screen you will see the trip of the respective day and below this, the region or town where the video was taken. Have fun watching!

It was an interesting time for sure but technical problems and bad weather made it tough sometimes. I learned all about the disadvantages of travel bikes with non-standard parts. From very short spokes to unusual tubes and gear hubs. In addition, my Garmin Edge 705 gave up completely. This is one of the worst things actually because I can’t get the data off. Personally I find this extremely disappointing.
But I can live with that and what remains is a good memory of beautiful places and friendly people in all the countries I have past.
It was a very diverse trip as well. Every day was different and provided new challenges. It didn’t really feel like three weeks; more like five or six. I can’t believe that the North Cape trip was just two days shorter. It felt much shorter for some reason.
I also clearly underestimate some things. I thought that traveling alone would be alright for me. And it was for a while but six weeks would have been too much. I think two or three weeks would be fine for the next trip. Also, the weather was much worse than I expected (also a contrast to the North Cape, when the weather was much better than expected). When I came back to Norway now, the weather was warmer and more comfortable than what I had anywhere within the last two weeks.

If I would do it again? Probably yes. I still think that it was a great experience and I have loads of good memories of the tour.

I got up early to get everything ready for the train, which was going to leave at 9:22. Everything went fine with the bike in the train as well. Seems that I was the only one with a bike here today. I had only one in Crewe and that one was easy too because there were plenty of train employees who helped to get to the right spot. The train system worked better than I expected according to what I heard from others.
In the final train it was time to decide what to do now. So I called Norwegian for changing the flight. It turned out that it costs the same when I leave today or in the next two days. So I took the one tonight. This was the easiest option with luggage already packed and plenty of time left to get the flight at 21:30.
I was not sure if it was the right thing to do but the weather looked terrible for the next days in Scotland anyway. Cycling wouldn’t be fun in the rain and sightseeing alone is also not the best thing I could think of. So that’s it then. I only finished half the planned trip but I think it is for the best.
Scotland will still be here for another attempt in the future.

Seems that it is not over yet.. My plane has a delay and it will be impossible to catch the last bus. I hope i can stay at the airport until the first bus leaves in the morning.

More rain and storm in the night didn’t allow me a good sleep but when I finally woke up, it looked pretty good again. Still pretty cool though.
I got on the bike rather early and started my last cycling day in Wales. The landscape was changing soon when I came closer to the coast. The first bigger village I crossed was Caernarfon and it was full with tourists. It also had an impressive fortress at the harbor.

Then I went on to my final destination today: Bangor. I arrived here just after 60km of cycling and had a lot of time left. First stop was the train station. There was even a human being I could speak to to buy the ticket to Edinburgh. This was easy; also got the bike registered without any problems. On the other side of the road was a small hotel so I checked for a room. They had one for 35 pounds. Great! That makes it even easier tomorrow.
After all this taken care of I went to the town which didn’t have so much to offer except a funny old pier. It even cost 50 pence to get in. In there you couldn’t do much more than drinking tea but it was a nice walk anyway.

Seems that they have a (proportionally) big University here. So I took a bike ride there and got a late lunch at a student’s pub. Then back to the hotel to get my stuff organized for tomorrow.
That was a relaxed day again. The fixed tire didn’t make any new problems but my gear hub is making a lot of noise now. Even when putting little force on the pedals. I don’t think that can be normal.. Unfortunately that part is impossible to fix. Something I have to take care of later.

First thing in the morning was to walk down to the center and find the bike shop. There was only one and it was a bit hidden in a back yard. The owner was slightly grumpy at the beginning because he had too much to do with repairs already. I told him that I need 20″ tubes with presta vents and he had nothing like this in storage and apparently they are really hard to get in the UK. Only bigger tubes with car vents as they are used in BMX bikes are available. But then he said I could bring the wheel and he will see what he can do. So back to the campsite, get the wheel (I took tire and tube off to make it easier) and back to the shop. They (a colleague arrived in the meantime) checked some things and realized there is no way to fix it.. But then they had the idea to fix my old tube or try something else with the tire. So back to the campsite again and get the rest of the stuff. I should have brought it at the first time of course.. But there was nothing else to do today anyway.
With everything at the shop they told me they will fix it. I should come back in half an hour. OK then.. Half an hour later, they really made it! They widened the vent hole in the rim to get a car vent through it, squeezed the too big tube into the tire and pumped it up successfully. In addition, they fixed one of my old tubes (the other one was completely destroyed). When I asked how much they get, the answer was just 5 pounds for the new tube! They even refused to take a tip with the explanation that they were happy to help a cyclist in need. Another great experience! The down side was that this repair was only provisionally. According to their opinion, it should be fine for a couple of more days but then I should change the tube again.
After all that I went food shopping, bought a Times and went back to the campsite. It was lunch time already so I had time to think about the next steps. I was staying at the campsite until tomorrow anyways.
Good that I found a spot for my hammock again. The weather is still stormy but no rain today at least.

I must say, I am getting tired of the trip. Now I am on the road for three weeks, the weather keeps to be pretty annoying and my knees start to hurt sometimes. Also it is a bit boring to this alone. I thought a couple of days more are alright but not three more weeks through rainy and lonely Scotland. So I will take the train soon and stay in Edinburgh area. Northern Scotland can wait for another visit. Probably not by bike though. Seems that there is not much alternative to the main roads and I experienced what that can mean in south England.
I was trying to take the train from Porthmadog but this turned out to be difficult. If you want to bring a bike you need to reserve it. So I called the train company to book it. They gave me a code I need to use at a ticket machine. But in Porthmadog is no ticket machine! So I would need to go to a station with a machine or I can not bring the bike. Interesting logic..
Anyways, tomorrow I will cycle to Bangor and get a ticket there. It has a better connection to the north as well.

Storm and rain started in the night so I slept pretty bad. It was very cold when I woke up as well. I had breakfast in the tent and packed my stuff quickly to get started. In the beginning, there was only a little bit of rain falling and my route went through pretty villages. Soon I reached another valley, which was famous for its slate resources.

Even the fences were built with slate here. But then the first hill of the day started. When I was cycling through the Shire the days before then I just reached Mount Doom. The incline was crazy and it took me forever to get on top. Wind and rain were also getting worse again. The first 12km took almost two hours today.

The rain stopped finally and a got a better view on the valley. Then I had a slow ride down because the gravel on the road made it to dangerous to go faster. At the bottom, the road was flat again and went in the direction of the sea. Finally a bit of sunshine and a pretty village to cross were very welcome now. Even though there was a sandstorm next to the beach.

Then the road was going up to the hills again, through beautiful countryside.

Another slow ride down was waiting here (not the best road conditions). But half way, I heard the worst noise when cycling: zzzzzzzzhhh my rear tire was flat. So I changed the tube, which cost me another 30 minutes because these 20″ tires are terribly tight on the rim. And what is wrong with my gears? The hub makes so many noises. Another thing to take care of..
When I reached the next town, it was almost 16:30 and I was completely done from this day. 1300 hight meters on less than 70km with constant strong wind were just too much. And on top of that, my rear wheel was flat again. So I fixed it and checked the tire for spikes, but there was nothing wrong. Then went on for one kilometer, until it was flat again. That was depressing! I asked at a (pretty shady) hotel nearby if they had a room available but as always, everything was booked out and the owner told me that probably the whole town was booked out. When he realized that I was stuck, he offered me that I could camp in his backyard. I was impressed, how awesome people are sometimes once more. I appreciated the offer but fixed my tire one more time first. There was a campsite on the way anyways. But the tire was flat soon again. So I pushed the bike to the campsite and will have to see what to do tomorrow. I think I passed a small bike shop in the town. So seems that I am stuck for now. At least the campsite is nice so it won’t be too bad to stay here for a day longer.

It was a cold night, borderline comfortable for my sleeping bag. Seems that it is unusually cool for July in Wales (according to the news) . And the tent was wet again as well. It is pretty annoying but I got adapted to it more or less by now.
I had a simple breakfast and got started pretty early at 8:20. Wished the other bikers farewell and went on.
The day was pretty similar to yesterday. First over many hills with a steady incline to a pass in 550 meters. Then a fun ride down to the valley. Only there were more hills today. I finished 900 hight meters before lunch already (after 50 kilometers) then there were 700 more hight meters over the pass. The landscape was great still! The only problem was the weather, which was opposite to yesterday. It started sunny and was getting worse in the afternoon. This was before noon:

Really great roads through fields and forests. The hills were tough sometimes but with this landscape and very few cars on the country roads, this was really fun to ride.
And this was in the afternoon, close to the pass:

It’s a gorge with the beautiful name Dylife.. Unfortunately the weather was getting worse until it started to rain again. The highest point of the day was close now.

But it wasn’t comfortable on the top so I started my ride down quickly. Not as great as yesterday’s but still fun to get rid of 500 hight meters within a couple of kilometers. The view could have been better though.
Short before entering the village Machynlleth I passed a golf course where sheep were working as green keepers:

People were playing there at the same time as well. Funny Welsh habits..
The trouble of the day was to find a spot to sleep. First I checked the inns, but everything was booked out. Same with the B&Bs. Then I went to the local campsite but they didn’t do tents. Then to the next, they didn’t do tents either! I mean this could happen once, but twice at the same day?? But funny thing, I met a taxi driver in the village who was showing me around to all the possibilities for accommodation. He was even calling some friends for me who could know something else. Great guy! In the end, it didn’t help unfortunately but he gave me a good advice where I get the best fish and chips and where I can find another likely camp spot on the way to the next village. So I went there and found it finally. Probably after searching for almost two hours.
A tough day is over. Probably one of the hardest so far. 1600 hight meters and 100km. But I think there’s only one more tall hill tomorrow and then it should be back to the coast, which should be a bit more flat.

The night at the inn helped a lot after the last two not-so-good days. First a good night of sleep and then a full English breakfast at 8 o’clock in the morning. And I managed to finish all of it. At check-out I got a 10 pound discount so I payed 40 for the night and breakfast. All in all a very pleasant experience.
The weather was still cloudy with light rain occasionally. But the roads were great. Very quiet country roads all day! They are everywhere in Wales; what a contrast to south England!

Sometimes I thought I was cycling in the Shire. But also the hills got taller. The first 40km were going slowly up. It was something like three hills up and one hill down. So that I got higher and higher slowly. But it didn’t matter when there is almost no traffic and you can cycle your own speed without being stressed even cycling up can be fun.

Then I reached the top at almost 600 height meters. And what a view up here! Now I was in the middle of a national park, which was also popular for hikers (I saw many of them on the way). This was looking back the road I came from:

To see the other side I had to go on little more and talked to a bunch of race bikers on the way. They had plenty of ideas which places I have to visit in Wales.
Then I saw the other side and the view was even better.

The down ride from here was crazy. Before the start, I tightened my breaks a bit more. Just to be sure..
The collected hight meters from the last 30km were blown away within less than 5km. But totally worth it! I almost crashed into a sheep though.
There was a small village in the valley with three outdoor stores; obviously a hiking area. And a supermarket where I could buy some lunch. After shopping I realized that I am still not really hungry after the huge breakfast. I ate only a little and I had something more for dinner already.
I went on and lost the road 10km later. I saw a shortcut through the forest on my map to get back on track but that was a mistake. I ended up on a steep downhill part full with thorny bushes, where I crashed a couple of times.

So I lost 30 minutes and got some scratches as a reminder that I take the longer but saver road next time.
After this, everything went on smoothly. Now the road was flat for while, following the river Wye. My goal was the village Wells, which I reached after 95 total kilometers today, after climbing some really mean 20% incline hills just before the end. Short before entering the city I met a couple of cyclists who were following me in and gave me a lot of advises what to do in the village and how great Wales is in general. Very nice people!
Then I went to the local campsite, which was almost empty but nicely located next to the river. I also met two other bike travelers on their way to the south. They told me that there are more tough hills waiting for me tomorrow and they gave me their map from northern Wales, which they didn’t need anymore. It’s pretty impressive how friendly everybody is who I met so far!
A supermarket was close by, so I went there to get some more dinner and breakfast for tomorrow. I also got a selection of Welsh ales. So this was a really good day! Pretty tough with 1200 hight meters but on these roads I am ready for more tomorrow. I really like Wales so far!

I woke up at 5:30 because the campsite rooster started a yelling competition with the other birds and everything was wet in the tent from condensation water. So I was out of the tent at 6 o’clock and was getting ready slowly. Drying things was difficult because it was still raining a little. I started to think about taking a hotel in the evening.
Then I started cycling in the direction of Bath following a little river. There were a lot of narrow boats going up and down the river.

So finally a muddy but quiet bike road. Then I arrived in Bath, which seemed to be an interesting old city but cycling here was a nightmare. So I forgot to take pictures.. Then I went on to Bristol over the railway cycling road, which took a longer way but it was a flat road at least. Cycling in Bristol was even worse than in Bath. Damn English cities are scary! I took only one crappy picture here.

Then I tried to get out of this madness again, which took a while to get through the maze of roads. Once out of the city I followed a nice bike path further north to the Severn Bridge. One of the two bridges north of Bristol to get over to Wales. After the bad bridge experience in France I was surprised how nice it was to cross this one. A good separated bike path was a good start for Wales.

Once on the other side, the hills started. It was kind of expected but after 60km in the legs already they were pretty challenging.
Almost instantly, Wales felt more like countryside.

I went over three more hills with 150 to 250m tops (partly through the rain) to get to Usk, which is a small but lively village with a couple of inns. This evening I thought I deserve a proper bed again so I checked the inns one by one until I found one with a vacant room. It was nice that they also ran a pub so I could have some beers and good food tonight.
This was a long day with almost 100km through confusing cities and over hills. But tomorrow, it seems there is a 600m climb waiting.

After a good night of sleep I woke up in more rain falling on the tent. It was not so strong but drying clothes was impossible. So packing things took some extra time. But it was nice to have a cup of tea and a chat with the other campers. The rain stopped finally but the sky was covered by dark clouds.

The roads were very good from morning to lunch in Salisbury. I managed to exchange my Jersey pounds to British pounds without problems and I even found a bike shop that made some spokes fitting for the wheel. But unfortunately they used different screws so I will have to take the wheel and the tire off sometimes. I went on pretty happy about the money and the spokes but then I came close to Stonehenge. I saw a road on my map which was getting there but for some reason, the farmers in England don’t want that people walk on there field roads. So my road was blocked and not an easy way to get around. This ment taking the bags of the bike, and carry everything over separately. After this annoying stop I went on a terrible gravel road the last kilometers to Stonehenge. I didn’t get close because didn’t want to leave my bike behind nor was I willed to pay the entrance fee. But I took a picture from a distance at least.

Then I left the area on another terrible gravel road (it was this or the highway, as usual) and finally back on the main road. What I didn’t know was that I went into military area now. I saw a less busy road and asked some soldiers if I can take it with the bike even though it says the road is blocked because of military exercise. They said “yes, it’s open” and I went on my way. So after 8km over steep hills, the road was closed for every civilian anyway.. So back to the town over a – this time not closed- field path. There I asked some old ladies how I get out of the town without using the main road. They told me there is no other way. So there I went again. Over the main road with heavy traffic and “tank crossing” signs everywhere.
Soon it started to rain again. Then I reached the town where I hoped to find a place for the night (Trowbridge). I stopped at the information center to ask for Bed and Breakfast places and I got a list of offers. I called some of them but they were all booked out except one which would have been 70 pounds. So campsite again. The only one more or less on the way was at the freaking main road of course. So after almost 90 (partly very annoying) kilometers I paid 12 pounds for a simple spot plus 50 pence for a shower. Internet for two hours would be 3 pounds extra.. So the blog has to wait another day. Crazy prices in England!
So in total, this day started well but ended pretty bad. Tomorrow I should reach the Eurovelo through Wales starting in Bristol and then I hope for better roads finally! My impression so far is that this country just doesn’t like cyclists. And a day without rain would be very welcome.
On the other hand, the people here are always super nice when I talk to them and it is good to be able to communicate without problems finally.